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European Bombard

Type Object Region Europe Time c. 1380–1500

European bombards were large bronze or wrought-iron cannons used in siege warfare in Western and Central Europe in the early to mid-15th century, fir…

Timeline

  1. c. 1380–1410Rhineland and the Low Countries · RhinelandFoundries arose in the Rhineland and the Low Countries, producing bronze bombards of enormous caliber, mainly used to batter castle stone walls, replacing some counterweight trebuchets.
  2. 1421–1430Bohemia and northern France · BohemiaIn multiple sieges of the Hussite Wars in the 1420s both sides deployed large bombards, and toward the end of the Hundred Years' War the French army also gradually fielded similar cannons; the bombard became the core weapon determining the pace of sieges.
  3. c. 1450–1500Central European cannon foundries · Central EuropeThe technique of forging wrought-iron barrel hoops matured, records of bombard caliber and powder charges became increasingly standardized, royal arsenals established dedicated cannon foundries, and large siege guns were incorporated into standing army ordnance systems.

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